Bullfighting
by xXPurpleInkXx
Summary: The warnings for his safety had been constant. The anxiety and fear had never faded while he sat in the stand. Now, Lovino could only hope and pray that Antonio would remain a fighter throughout it all. One-shot.


The night was cold. Bitterly cold. The wind outside was strong, so strong that the tree that was there was being blown easily by the heavy wind. The branches tapped fiercely against the window of the small, dark room, causing an eerie sound to almost thunder in the quiet area.

At the corner of the room, Lovino sat in a chair. His face was buried into his hands, and his elbows rested on his knees. His back curved and if it wasn't for him sitting down, he would have almost been in a fetal position. The tears ran down his cheeks, flowing so smoothly as they landed onto his hands, and here and there they spilled on the sleeves of his sweater.  
Beside him, more into the center of the room, was a hospital bed. On it Antonio was there, nearly lifeless and without any movement whatsoever. His body was covered by a thin white blanket. There were wires all over his body, most of them trying to regulate his breathing, if any breathing. As for the others, Lovino didn't really know what they did. But they made Antonio look so horrible, to be bound to the wires like that.  
There was no other way to do it, said the doctors.

_In the morning when Lovino had woken up, Antonio was finely dressed in his matador outfit. Lovino liked how it looked on him and all, but he never liked seeing him with it because he knew what was going to happen. He was going to battle a bull. In other words, bullfighting. It was especially dangerous. Lovino couldn't even count how many times he had gone to see an event, and had to face one of the matadors severely injured. Or dead._

_"Bastardo, where do you think you are going?" he huffed, glaring at him. Maybe he could stop Antonio from going to the bullfight. "It's dangerous. You really shouldn't go, Toni."_

_Antonio smiled at him brightly, as he had always done when he wanted to reassure the Italian. "Come on Lovi, I'll be fine! How many times have I gotten injured, huh?"_

_Lovino remained quiet. First off, he really didn't like when Antonio would call him 'Lovi'. Secondly.. Well, he couldn't think of a time when he had gotten injured. Antonio was one of the best matadors in the country, if not the best. But being cocky about it wouldn't help him be better. It was important to take precautionary measures._

_"Vale, Lovino, I'll be fine~" he chirped. He kissed the younger Italian's forehead and smiled at him. "Te amo, bien? I have to leave early today, so I'm going now. I will see you later, and when I get home, I will have dinner ready and everything!"_

Those were his last words to him. They still remained, achingly, in Lovino's head and heart. What he hated most was that he really didn't take the time to tell him "ti amo." Antonio knew it, but just the fact alone made Lovino feel so horrible.

_In the later afternoon, at the ring where they held all of bullfighting events, Lovino sat in the very front row of the sitting section. He could see Antonio waiting for the bull, a big smile on his face as he did so. Lovino really had no heart to wave at him, or scream his name in support. He was upset to be here._

_A few minutes later, the bull was released. The people in the crowd roared with excitement. They all knew Antonio very well, and they loved him because he did his job so well. Many of the people were holding the Spanish flags over their heads. Others held posters with Antonio's name and a heart, showing their support for the ever happy Spaniard._

_Antonio dodged the bull, his movements so graceful and swift. He held the red cloth in his hands, and when he would bring it up you could hear him chanting "ole, ole!" or "toro, toro!". The bull was never even able to catch up to him once. He was just so fast._

_The Spaniard looked behind himself, waving at his fans and blowing kisses. In that time, the bull charged at him and thrust his horns upward, hitting Antonio square on the side of his face. For less than a second, he was stuck to the bull. His body was then flung to the other side of the arena. The animal charged at him once more, his horn hitting Antonio's stomach. No doubt it had caused a gash._

_The crowd screamed in utter horror. People came out to lure the bull away from him. While they tried to get him off of the Spaniard, the bull managed to hit him twice more, on the arm and on the leg. From there on, it all seemed like a blur. More people came to put him on stretcher. Lovino had jumped from the stands and screamed, "Antonio! Antonio!"_

_The Spaniard looked weakly to his side as he was carried away. His hair was full of blood, as for the side of his face. The blood was spreading onto the other side of his face. Red stained the areas of his stomach, his right leg, and his right arm. His matador clothing was ruined completely._

_"Antonio!" he cried once more._

_Antonio was barely able to open his mouth and whisper, "Lovino.."_

_They all sent Antonio away, while Lovino tried to push through the crowd and go meet with him. But he never got the chance. That was the last time he would be able to see those eyes, so bright and green._

He was there. He had been there for several days. His little brother, Veneziano, had come everyday to send him food, clothing, and the best of his condolences. The condolences didn't just come from him. Francis had come as well. Especially him, too, since he was very close to Antonio. He had even stayed a while to see if he would come back, but had to leave because he had so many things to do. It wasn't just Francis and Veneziano who came, though. Even Arthur, Ludwig, and Roderich had come to see him, and to give Lovino their condolences and best wishes.

But none of those would make him better. None of them would take the wires out of his body, or cure him of the wounds. Lovino just had to wait and plead that nothing bad would happen.

His hopes were then destroyed. The doctor came to him one day, and told him that the chances were too slim to hope. He suggested the Lovino should let him off of life support. At the rate that Antonio was healing, if he even was healing, it was no doubt to the doctor that Antonio would be brain dead within the next few days. "There just isn't a point in waiting," the doctor told him. "That bull caused a really serious head injury. We stitched the side of his face together, but there is nothing else we can do about that. Also, that stomach injury itself was horrible. We know it was more than just his stomach that was damaged in that hit. I'm sorry, Lovino, but I don't think he has a chance."

Lovino refused to believe. Antonio had always been a fighter, both for his country and his own life. Lovino believed he would wake up again.

For several days he remained, waiting for something to tell him that he was now brain dead. But it never came. Those days were so long, so torturous. He spent them waiting, for the worst of news. The Italian couldn't even wait for good news anymore. It seemed it would not come. It seemed that only bad news would come again.

A few weeks had passed, in total. No news whatsoever. At this point, Romano would not expect any type of good news. He was only waiting for the bad.

Finally one day he decided that no matter how much he hated it, he would have to pull the plug. All of this waiting was doing nothing positive for him in return. That day, he had told the doctor to come by later to do the deed.

For the time being, he was crying uncontrollably, knowing that he had lost his beloved Spaniard forever. He had warned him, but Antonio wouldn't take the warning and had gone out anyway. Somehow, this all felt like it was his own fault, not Antonio's.

He wanted so much to hug him, to tell him that he loved his 'idiota' or 'bastardo'.

He wanted to see those bright eyes again, that smile. Not the pale, ghostly face and the lifeless body.

If only he could take back all the horrible things he said.. If he could reverse time, so he can go back and tell Antonio that he loved him, one last time..

A few minutes before the doctor came in, while Lovino continued crying, there was a soft noise from across the room. It was almost inaudible the first time, but the noise was done again.

"Lovino.. Why.. are you crying..?"

The green eyes were open slightly. It took a second for Lovino to process that through his mind. Suddenly, he ran over, crying his name once more.


End file.
